Hormone Therapy and Other Treatments for Symptoms of Menopause

D. ASHLEY HILL, MARK CRIDER, SUSAN R. HILL

Hormone therapy is the most effective treatment for the vasomotor symptoms of menopause. Women with a uterus who are taking estrogen should also take progestogen to reduce the risk of endometrial cancer. Combined estrogen/progestogen therapy, but not estrogen alone, has been...

Unexplained Lymphadenopathy: Evaluation and Differential Diagnosis

HEIDI L. GADDEY, ANGELA M. RIEGEL

History and physical examination alone may not reveal the etiology of lymphadenopathy in a small subset of cases. When unexplained lymphadenopathy is encountered, it should be classified as localized or generalized, and the associated lymphatic drainage patterns assessed....

Sexually Transmitted Infections: Recommendations from the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force

KAREN C. LEE, QUYEN NGO-METZGER, TRACY WOLFF, JOYA CHOWDHURY, MICHAEL L. LEFEVRE, DAVID S. MEYERS

To assess for behaviors that increase a patient’s risk of acquiring a sexually transmitted infection, clinicians should obtain a detailed sexual history and consider community and population risk factors. The USPSTF recommends screening for chlamydia and gonorrhea in all...

AAFP News: AFP Edition

AAFP Expresses Disappointment with Final 2017 Medicare Fee Schedule | Campaign Seeks to Educate Opioid Prescribers | AAFP Guides Social Security Administration in Revising Disability Evidence Rules | National STI Prevalence Hits All-Time High

AFP's Acceptance Rates and Timelines to Publication

JAY SIWEK

In this issue, we begin what will be a regular report documenting the acceptance rates of our clinical review articles and timelines to publication. We are doing this to inform readers and authors of some behind-the-scenes details of how we craft the journal and to set...

Aripiprazole vs. Placebo or Haloperidol for Schizophrenia

SHAHRIAR ZEHTABCHI

Aripiprazole was shown to have one major benefit over placebo, but favorable outcomes with haloperidol throw its effectiveness into question. Are the differences merely anomalies?

Mini-Mental State Examination for the Detection of Dementia in Older Patients

VIRGINIA B. KALISH, BRIAN LERNER

When scores are adjusted based on a patient's education level, the MMSE may be useful to rule out a diagnosis of dementia in clinically unevaluated patients 65 years and older (sensitivity = 97%; specificity = 70%). Scores of less than 24 may also be useful to rule in...

Impact of Exercise-Based Cardiac Rehabilitation

AARON SAGUIL, MATTHEW RENSBERRY

Exercise-based cardiac rehabilitation reduces cardiovascular mortality and hospitalization. There is no evidence that it reduces the rates of total mortality, myocardial infarctions, coronary artery bypass grafts, or percutaneous coronary interventions.

Interventions to Improve Antibiotic Prescribing for Uncomplicated Acute RTIs

AARON SAGUIL

What are the effectiveness and adverse consequences of strategies for reducing antibiotic use in adults and children with uncomplicated acute respiratory tract infections (RTIs)?

Lateral Neck Lesions with Vision Changes

MARISOL CLARK, ERIKA WITTLER

A man with a history of skin changes presented with sudden onset of bilateral blurry vision.

Rotator Cuff Disease: Diagnostic Tests

CHRISTIAN VERRY, SHERAN FERNANDO

A positive lag sign with external rotation is the best test for full-thickness tears of the infraspinatus and supraspinatus (positive likelihood ratio = 7.2). A positive lag sign with internal rotation is best for assessing full-thickness tears of the subscapularis (positive...

Step-by-Step Approach to Ruling Out Infant Infection Is Accurate

ALLEN F. SHAUGHNESSY

The Step-by-Step approach, using a basic physical examination and readily available urine and blood tests (without lumbar puncture; see the Synopsis section), can successfully identify low-risk infants younger than 90 days who will not need empiric antibiotic treatment and...

Cervical Treatment Associated with Adverse Obstetric Outcomes

LINDA SPEER

Larger Bottles Associated with Greater Weight in Infants

ALLEN F. SHAUGHNESSY

In nonbreastfed infants, using large bottles (at least 6 oz [180 mL]) to feed infants two months of age was associated with greater weight gain by six months of age. The authors did not report adverse effects associated with bottle size. This is an interesting study that...

Lumbar Fusion No Better Than Exercise and Therapy in the Long Term

MARK H. EBELL

This trial is a good example of how to do just about everything wrong to get the results you want. The authors did not conceal allocation, did not mask anyone in the study, used an unvalidated and subjective primary outcome, and downplayed the intention-to-treat analysis....

CDC Updates Eligibility Criteria for Contraceptive Use

LISA HAUK

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) first published the U.S. Medical Eligibility Criteria for Contraceptive Use, which is a companion document to the U.S. Selected Practice Recommendations for Contraceptive Use, in 2010 to provide guidelines on safely using a...

Treating Menopausal Symptoms

Menopause (MEN-oh-pawz) is when a woman's ovaries make less estrogen and other hormones. It is a normal part of aging. It usually starts around age 50, but it can happen earlier or later. Menopause may happen fairly quickly, or it may take several years for you to feel symptoms.